Chapter 23
CHAPTER 23
Heart still racing, Brianna tried to catch her breath as Aidan sprinted up the hill toward her. Even though it appeared they were out of danger, she felt like they were still open targets and kept looking around, terrified someone else would jump out at any second. As soon as Aidan was close enough, she loosened her grip on the bow and reached out with her good arm, desperate to touch him, keeping her sore arm tucked securely in front of her. She hadn’t even had the chance to look at it yet but knew it had to be at least badly bruised.
“Breea.” Aidan’s voice was ragged as he fell to his knees just before her, grasping her shoulders and bringing his face level with hers. Slowly, he pushed her hood down, breathing her name again, and searching her eyes, as he gently brushed the hair from her face. “Are you injured?”
She grasped his hand, marveling at how familiar its shape already felt to her, the comfort she drew from it. “I need my arrows,” she said, returning to her present urgency. “They’re at the bottom of the hill. My daggers, too.”
He seemed startled by her request, then something shifted in his expression, and he stared at her so intently, like he was trying to figure her out. Frustrated at his lack of action, her eyes darted from side to side, keeping watch in case anyone else appeared.
“ Aidan , please, we’re defenseless.”
Finally, he moved, shaking his head. “Nay, Breea. We are not.”
Before she could protest, he took his firm hands and framed her face, blocking her periphery, making it so she could look only at him as he stared deeply into her eyes.
“I am armed,” he said, his voice sure and even. “I’ve two swords, and six daggers, two of which are yours, and in a moment, I will retrieve your arrows. But you must know, we are not defenseless, and you are no longer on your own.” He still hadn’t moved, or for that matter, let her move, but Brianna felt her breathing begin to slow, and when her shoulders relaxed, she made a sound close to a sigh. Aidan nodded approvingly. “Aye,” he said, then waited another moment before he released her. “Are you injured?” he asked, sliding his hands over her head, pressing gently as he went. She noticed a cut beneath his eye, then, and reached out. “Brianna.” Aidan waited until she looked at him again. “Did he hurt you?” he asked, more urgently this time .
Oh. Her eyes widened at the thought, but she quickly shook her head, realizing she must not have answered him before. She could see his relief, and whispered his name, tracing the thin cut along his hairline, and the one beneath his eye. “Breea. I’m whole,” he assured her. “A few scrapes, nothing more.”
“What about Henry?” she asked. “Is he okay? Alan, Richard?” She tried not to think about Kitty or their horses, otherwise she’d only imagine the worst.
“I’m sure they’re close behind,” he said, continuing his careful but earnest inspection of her. As his hands skimmed her shoulders, down her arms, she winced, which made him stop at once. “You are injured.”
She shook her head, confused for a moment, then she remembered, her wrist. The man had grabbed it and slammed her arm so she’d drop her dagger. Her dagger ! She’d dropped them both.
“My dagger. Aidan,” she said, suddenly feeling more exposed. “And my arrows.” Brianna gestured toward where they lay. “You said you’d get them.”
“I will.” He nodded slowly, then leaned in, trying to get a better look at her hand. She wasn’t even sure he’d touched her yet, but she cried out in anticipation, and his eyes shot to hers.
“Sorry. It’s just tender. I’m jumpy.”
He nodded, and pulled his hands back, giving her wrist a good look from where he sat, grimacing before he pulled back her sleeve. He was so gentle, so quiet, even when he sighed, closing his eyes and shaking his head before looking at her again .
“Breea,” he said. “You wielded the bow…with this hand?”
Brianna looked down at her right hand, the injured one. Yes, she’d used her bad arm, but what other choice did she have? She wasn’t paying attention to her injuries at the time, she’d been running for her life, and cover—and stopping that man from attacking Aidan.
“It’s my dominant hand,” she said, which should have been excuse enough. “I needed my aim to be true.”
If he was unhappy with her answer, he hid it well and said nothing more on the matter, just looped her bow over his shoulder. “I need to wrap this, but let’s get down the hill first. Then we’ll need to make haste for Seagrave. Brace your arm.” He said no more, just carefully lifted her, grimacing when she winced, and carried her down the hill. Once she was settled, she burrowed against him and for a moment, forgot they were more visible now. “I see no one,” he said, correctly guessing why she had stirred, then gently pressed her back.
When he reached the area where she’d dropped her arrows, he shifted her slightly but kept her in his arms as he bent to grab them and the quiver, too. “Until your arm heals, you’ll trust me to see to your defense,” he said, looping her quiver over his shoulder.
There was a hitch in his voice that Brianna caught immediately, and her fear took a backseat for a moment. She tugged on his shirt to get his attention, and when he looked down at her, though he was every bit the implacable warrior ever in control, she knew him well enough now to see the pain and sorrow he tried to hide from her .
“Aidan,” she said, her tone deadly serious, “I will always trust you. I hope I’ll never be in that position again, but…it was your strength and courage that guided me through.”
Brianna held his gaze for a long moment, watching as his expression softened, and he lifted her just enough to nudge his face to hers, a touch they both needed. She’d just settled against his chest again, feeling his strong, and very sure arms giving her a gentle squeeze, when Aidan suddenly tensed and stopped short. She let out a muffled shriek and whipped her head around to see what had caused his reaction, but a moment later, relaxed her death grip on his arm. At the bottom of the hill, standing in the meadow, was Merri, looking completely unharmed. At the sight of her, Brianna’s breath caught. Her horse . She was nearly in tears from the relief, and as her heartbeat once again started to slow, Aidan gave her another gentle squeeze. When she turned to face him, she saw that his eyes were glassy, and when he spoke, his voice welled with emotion.
“She came back for you.”
Somehow, Brianna wasn’t surprised, even amidst all the chaos. Merri’s return just confirmed what she already knew, what she felt—they were meant to be together, all of them. “We’re a family, Aidan,” she said, settling against his chest again, “of course she returned.”
His mouth set for a moment, his grip on her still tight. After a second, he grunted, and with a nod, continued forward. When he reached a soft patch of grass near to where Merri stood, waiting, he gently set her on the ground before turning to the horse.
Brianna kept a watchful eye on the hillsides while Aidan gave Merri a quick once over, whispering praise and affection into the mare’s ear, loud enough for Brianna to hear. His inspection complete, he gave her another well-deserved pat, then untied one of the bags tacked to her side.
“Merri was carrying our supplies from the apothecary,” he said, relief filling his face as he knelt beside her to unpack it. He was so outwardly calm and in control again, at once her fierce warrior and soothing protector.
“You need to drink something,” he said, opening a skin of water he’d pulled out of the bag.
She nodded, realizing suddenly that she was beyond parched, which reminded her again of the peril they were just in. Aidan must have noticed the look cross her face.
“Breea.” His hands cupped her head as she sipped the cool water. “You’re safe now.”
She took one last gulp, then met his eyes. She was starting to believe that they were safe, but… “I killed two men, Aidan.” She was whispering, but still, she’d needed to say that out loud .
“Who had no regard for your life nor mine,” he said not missing a beat.
He was right, obviously, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t a lot to process. She wasn’t sure she was able to talk any more about it at the moment, and Aidan seemed to sense that. When she said no more, he just nodded and helped her take another drink before looking at her arm again. She hadn’t seen what he’d purchased from the apothecary back in Ayr, but as she watched him open some of the pouches, she could see that they were filled with different kinds of herbs and powders. He mixed a few powders together first, in a small drinking cup before adding some water, turning it into a milky liquid.
“I can’t account for the taste,” he said, grimacing, as he knelt in front of her to give her the mixture, “but it will help with the pain, and mayhap calm your nerves.”
Brianna nodded and braced herself. She had a moment of panic wondering if she should really trust this fifteenth-century remedy, but then shrugged it off—what other options did she have? And besides, she knew Aidan would never give her anything that he deemed the slightest risk. She downed the concoction, which really didn’t taste so bad—like one of the vitamin supplement packets she took mixed with a bottle of water, the kind that didn’t dissolve and tasted sort of woodsy—and Aidan nodded, satisfied.
After setting aside the cup, he mixed some herbs with another powder in what served as a mortar and pestle, then opened a small container filled with an ointment of some kind, adding it to the mixture to make a paste.
Brianna looked down at her arm, taking note of the blotchy areas of pink and red already marring her skin, from the top of her hand to her elbow, not to mention the scrapes and cuts she must have gotten from running through the brush. She watched as Aidan gingerly rinsed the raw spots, then applied the salve. She was amazed at how he seemed to be so good at this, too. Once he had finished gently rubbing the salve into her skin, he looked up at her and smiled softly, then stroked her cheek before he took out what looked to be soft spun linen tucked inside another larger pouch.
When he finally wrapped her arm, the pressure immediately alleviated some of the pain, especially in her wrist and hand. Then, he tilted her chin to get a better look at her face, searching for cuts and scrapes, along her hairline. He glanced down after a minute and looked into her eyes with so much care, that Brianna felt it wash over her like a balm. Overcome, she whimpered, bracing his leg. His entire stance shifted in an instant, and he gently wrapped his arms around her, holding her as close as he could without putting pressure on her injured arm, and sinking into their embrace. When he pulled back after a long moment, he brushed his lips to hers, then returned to his careful ministrations, cleaning the scrapes on her face, which Brianna obviously couldn’t see, and didn’t even remember she had .
“Are there more?” he asked, glancing around her body.
She shook her head. “I don’t think so.” Though she really couldn’t remember. “I don’t know, maybe, but just scrapes, I think.”
“Will you show me? The last thing I want to worry about is letting something fester.”
There were a few raw spots on her knees, and one on the back of her thigh from when she’d fallen to the ground. It felt like there might be a few more bruises on her torso, but nothing too serious. After cleaning and applying salve to those too, he stood and tore off a strip from his cloak.
She was so startled at the sound, she gasped. His eyes locked on hers, and he knelt beside her, calming her with a touch. “I promise you, the danger has passed,” he said, waiting a moment before he continued, “We’ve a few hours ride still. We’ll be on MacGreggor land soon enough, but Seagrave lies a distance from the border. ’Tis best to keep your arm secure, in the meantime.”
Brianna nodded, she hadn’t even considered until that moment that she couldn’t ride, at least not alone. “Do you think Merri’s ready?” she asked, wondering if carrying the both of them might be too much for her.
“I think she’s more than ready, but if she shows any signs of strain, I’ll gladly walk and lead her.”
Brianna nodded, then something struck her and she gasped again. Aidan’s mention of making a sling reminded her that she still had no idea where Kitty was .
“Aidan?” She didn’t even have to ask. He must have guessed just by looking at her.
“We’ll find her. I would imagine, she’s tucked safely away and out of harm’s reach.”
A few minutes later, Aidan slipped the sling over her head, wrapping the material around her arm so it was cradled. Brianna noticed the difference immediately as her neck and shoulder bore the weight. She gave Aidan a grateful look, but flinched, clutching his leg with her good hand when she heard sounds coming from the edge of the clearing.
“My men,” he said, looking at her. She wasn’t sure how he knew that, but as if on cue, Aidan’s men came into the clearing, their horses led along behind them.
When they got a little closer, Brianna saw that Henry had Kitty’s carrier draped over his shoulder, and she appeared very content nestled against him. She clutched Aidan’s legs again, so happy she almost cried. She covered her mouth, and when she turned to Aidan, he was already waiting. She was so overcome, feeling like they were really and truly safe, all of them, that she didn’t notice much, but what clearly stuck with her was the look in his eyes, and how it filled her heart.
Soon, Henry was beside her, transferring Kitty into her arms. Trying not to lose it and blubber all over Kitty while she cuddled her, Brianna asked the men if they were alright. When they didn’t answer, she looked up and saw they were all wearing ghastly expressions. It took her a moment to realize that they might have been insulted that she’d even questioned their welfare—or, more accurately, their ability to handle themselves in a fight. Thankfully, Aidan interjected on her behalf, making sure they knew she was asking in earnest. Before the men could reply, he went on to explain that it was Brianna who felled the man in the field near their camp, and she again felled another within the wood, a short distance behind them.
“Because of Brianna, the Sinclair name and the House of Pembrooke still has a future.”
And then, as if she’d been initiated somehow, all three of the men gave Brianna a full accounting of their welfare. They left out the gory details but assured her that they were all indeed hale, hearty, and whole, delivering the news with a notable respect.
While she was proud to have held her own, Brianna would gladly leave the defense to Aidan and the men in the future, and she told them as much.
“Rest assured, I never want to have to do that again,” she said, then changed the subject, feeling somewhat abashed at being the center of attention. “Your horses came back, too,” she said.
Henry nodded, eyes alight. “Truthfully, ’twas Merri who brought them back,” he said. “Right to the very spot where we’d bedded down, then she trotted off, and I can see now where she was headed so quickly.”
Brianna felt a rush of tears and looked over at her horse again and then back at all of them. They’d all become so important to her. They didn’t even seem to mind that she was a bit all over the place and gave her a few minutes to release some of her pent-up emotions. Aidan knelt behind her though, and held her, while she cried all over Kitty, soothing her with whispers of nothing really, just sounds, as he rocked her until she calmed.
When she’d finally gathered herself, Aidan kissed the top of her head and rubbed behind Kitty’s ears, too. Then Henry knelt and motioned for her to transfer Kitty back to him so he could put her in her carrier—there was no way she was going to be able to hold her with her arm in a sling. She nuzzled Kitty a moment longer, then handed her back. Henry stopped short of cuddling the feline to his neck just in time, as all eyes were on him.
Once Kitty was safely ensconced with Henry, Aidan went off to conference briefly with Henry and the rest of his men, who were clustered a few feet away, taking stock of their things.
It was decided that Merri would get her due and carry her and Aidan to Seagrave. Henry would ride alongside them, while Alan and Richard would follow close behind, escorting the men that they must have kept out of her sight but who’d surrendered. By the time Aidan lifted her atop Merri, Brianna could barely feel the pain in her wrist—his concoction was working, or at least the placebo effect was, which was just as good at the moment. When Aidan climbed astride the saddle blanket behind her, she leaned into him, enjoying his solidity. He helped her find the perfect position, unrestrained without a saddle but safe and secure in his arms. She knew he was eager to get her to Seagrave, but she noticed that he still took an extra beat to hold her as she settled against him, a sound of utter contentment escaping his lips. She felt it too, and whispered her thanks.
“Time for that hot bath and soft bed I promised you,” he said, rubbing his chin on her head.
It hadn’t even occurred to her until he said it again, but she honestly hadn’t minded the lack of creature comforts on their journey, or anything about it—at least before this morning. She’d never experienced what it was like to be so close to someone, and if that meant sleeping on the ground every night or bathing in a stream, she’d take both over what she’d had before. A life without real companionship. She knew then that she truly loved him, and that superseded all else. Feeling truly safe in Aidan’s arms, it wasn’t long before Brianna felt a wave of exhaustion come over her as she slipped into what would surely be a deep and peaceful sleep.